Advent Pro

I love this pack! It's a BIG pack in a little pack frame. Gregory claims this is an adventure pack for adventure racing, but the pack is incredible for weekend hikes or day hikes. I'm able to put a 4 liter hydration pack inside! I used this bad boy for my overnighter to Whitney. In (and on) it I had packed by sleeping bag (Marmot Pinnacle), tent (2-man), Thermarest, clothes, food, stove, pans, fuel, and my treking poles! The pack was stuffed but still fit well. I love the zippered pockets on the waist belt for quick snacks and the pocket on the left shoulder strap is great for holding my GPS. I wish the bottom compartment was a tad bigger and the waist belt had a bit more padding but overall this is an excellent pack that gives you the freedom to take a lot of gear and still have a good summit pack from base camp.

Really a nice pack, you can take it for a long weekend, but it's still light enough for a day pack, very versitile. Lots of nice features and the material it is made out of is light but really strong. I took this pack on a 10 day trek in Nepal. I had a duffle that was packed by mules but this held everything I needed every day. It held up to some hard use and has some great features. The pockets on the waist belt will hold granola bars or a small camera, nice side pockets for big water bottles. The mesh pocket on the back is an easy place to stuff you jacket as the day warms up, and also anything you want to get to fast. Well built and comfortable.

I bought this pack for its modest yet surprisingly effective design. It is made out of waterproof material that is ultra light, and yet extremely durable when stretched to the limits. This bag has enough room to stuff 2 days worth of goods, and is an excellent day pack or a weekend companion. There is plenty of pockets and mesh compartments to stuff all your belongings where they need to be.

The bag has a flaw with how it carries when fully loaded as the bottom half tend to bend because there is not enough rigid material to keep the pack together. Pull tight on the straps and it will stick to the body tight like glue.

Great overall value from Gregory.

I have had this pack for a few years, now. Initially, I liked the light weight (under 3 lbs.) and a number of its features. However, after a short while I gave up on it. I retired the bag, then gave it a second chance - but now it is going in permanent cold storage. There are two reasons. First, the durability of the bag is lacking. It is probably due to the lightweight material and construction, but I repaired unravelled seams more than once. One of the zippers also came off. I have repaired bags before and understand that it is necessary when they are put to certain levels of abuse, and the lost zipper was not a major concern because it had a dual zipper, so essential functionality was not lost. Second, my main objection are these obnoxious elastic bungees on the side and top of the bag. They can and do get caught on everything. They are conifer magnets. You cannot take this bag buswhacking because these cords will get caught, and they stretch forever, and then after you've plowed ahead 10 feet, they yank you back. It is impossible to take it in the woods when there is deep snow and you are encountering overhead branches that you would ordinarily clear.

The newer version of this bag (2007), from what I can see in the catalog seems to have remedied this by eliminating the cords. That was a good move.

I have had this pack for some time and it has seen quite a few mountain summits. Although I love its many straps and its light weight, I will probably reconsider getting another pack made of this high-tech silicone impregnated nylon fabric. The material is great at stopping rips, but it doesn't prevent them from forming. My backpack is now full of all sort of nicks and cuts. Whether this pack will work for you depends on the kind of trips you plan to do. It is a great backpack for day snow climbs or overnight summer hikes, but it is not the pack to take for off trail bushwhacking or scrambling through a rocky terrain.

I was skeptical when I got this pack because I would mainly be using it as a scrambling day-pack. I was worried the thin fabric wouldn't hold up to the bushwacking and abrasion from rocks. I've been using it for almost a year now and have had it up and down 30+ summits in the Canadian Rockies and so far, so good. I have had to make one minor repair but it was my fault as I lifted it loaded by the lid which was too much weight for the material holding one of the lid straps. I had it reinforced and it's better than new. I've had a few snags on the mesh pockets but it looks like the newest model has a solid panel instead of mesh. I like the big back pocket as it holds my helmet perfectly and I've had no problem lashing on snowshoes, crampons and an ice axe. My only complaint is the back panel absorbs sweat and can get rank after a few uses. Since it doesn't have anything rigid in it though, I just toss it in the washing machine with some tech wash and it comes out good as new so not a major problem.

This is a very light pack- makes for a good summit pack. It seems delicate, but mine has held up well. Good capacity too.